It looks like Duuring's map is going to win. If it loses, I'll edit my location ^^
Kingdom of Dell (Yes, I have a Dell laptop. Yes, it's a good laptop. No, I did not name my kingdom Dell because of my laptop.)
Spoiler
History
Before the great Empire of Iropia came to the Hightower Mountains, although they weren't called the Hightower Mountains back in those days, there was not much known about the place. Multiple mountain tribes ruled over the mountains, tribes that preferred a lonely life without any influences from outside the mountains. Thus, if one from outside entered the mountains, he'd be killed.
This changed when the Empire of Iropia reached the mountains. First, being frightened by the rumours of the presense of dragons and other mythological creatures, the empire send three expeditionary forces into the mountains. When several months later eleven men returned from the mountains, telling stories about rocks falling from the sky and deadly projectiles coming out of the mountains, they were asked whether they had seen any dragons. The survivors answered that they had not seen any dragons. The same day, the Imperial Armies entered the mountains.
Soon it became known that the spooky rocks and projectiles were just the mountain tribes trying to defend their mountains. They'd throw rocks from above, or dig small rooms out of the mountainside, with a tiny window from which they could shoot. After they knew that, the 'colonization' of the mountains went incredibly fast. Almost all the tribes were either killed or subjugated. They quickly built a few small fortifications against the remaining tribes and then left the mountains again, as 'there was no way a kingdom could thrive in those mountains'.
Except for some small raids by the mountain tribes, nothing happened in the mountains, until hundreds of years later. The winter had lasted for multiple years, causing immense amounts of snow to stack up in the mountains. When it finally got warmer again, all the snow melted. In a short time, all the lands between the mountains and the eastern sea, had been flooded, which meant that all inland trade between north and south had come to a standstill.
First was thought that the water would go away after a few months. But when two years after the great flood, the lands were still flooded, the emperor decided to take action. Suddenly thousands of Imperial soldiers entered the mountains again, from both the northern and the southern side, and started creating roads. In a rapid pace the roads were built until, only a few years after they started, the roads were connected. In a few years, the great Empire of Iropia built a road through the Hightower Mountains, connecting northern Iropia and soutern Iropia again.
As the roads had to be maintained in a proper state, the Hightower Mountains were then given to a rich noble of the house Mercan. The noble gave orders to construct a castle on the highest mountain of the Hightower Mountains, and as if the view wasn't already perfect from there, he ordered a massive tower to be built. When the castle was done and named 'Hightower', the noble and his southern soldiers entered the mountains.
When more and more traders started using the mountain road, which was by then called the 'Flood Road' as the great flood was the reason it existed, the nobleman decided to turn the Hightower Mountains into an important trade area. For this idea to succeed, he needed a city where traders could go to. The house Mercan wasn't afraid to show it's wealth and power by constructing massive and expensive buildings, so a rather special city was created for the traders, it was built upon a great lake. For a trader to enter the city, he'd have to take one of the hundreds of boats going to it every day. The great trade city was named Dell.
In contradiction to what was first thought, those who lived in the mountains thrived. The house Mercan became richer and richer and there were even ideas to make the city of Dell the capital of the Empire. But then, the water left the flooded lands downhill. Just as fast as the mountains became the most important trade area of the Empire, they now lost that status. The inland trade between north and south was a lot easier, now that traders could just walk around the mountains again. Only a few years after the water left, there was not a single trader in the Hightower Mountains left.
When more and more nations started revolting against the empire, the ruler of the Hightower Mountains, Daran Mercan, decided to leave the empire, create 'The Kingdom of Dell' and join the revolt in order to protect it's house and belongings. As the south of the Hightower Mountains bordered the empire, Daran immediately ordered a gate to be build. This gate was built between two great mountains, and was the only way to enter the Hightower Mountains from the south. But more and more nations revolted and the empire fell sooner than expected, so that gate had never been of any use.
Present
The years after the Empire fell, Daran began with slowly taking control of everything. Although there used to be councils for all kind of things and the king was not of any real use at all, Daran is now the one and only person ruling the Hightower Mountains. The people love king Daran, and see him as a hero for having fought for the freedom of the Kingdom of Dell. Now that the Imperial Armies aren't there anymore to keep the mountain tribes away, more and more of them have returned to the mountains and started looting again.
Military
The house of Mercan was originally from the south, thus, the Kingdom of Dell has a southern military. Although they are with very few, the soldiers are well equipped, very diciplined and they're incredibly good at fighting in mountainous areas.
Culture & religion
As Daran Mercan is a southern ruler, his people all worship the main religion of the south, no one is allowed to worship anything else. They are known to have the same rituals the mountain tribes used to have. There are still some well educated people who started living there when the mountains were an important trade area, and did not want to leave when the water withdrew.
Economy
The Kingdom of Dell is still rich from it's wealthy past, but there is no more money coming in. There are many iron mines in the Hightower Mountains, which produce just enough to pay for the nation's spendings.
